Sustainability and ultra-processed foods: role of youth

Abstract

The objective of this research is to study and look at the ways how processed food affects human and environmental health and to find alternatives to processed food.  Sustainability refers to the efforts made to meet the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to fulfil their requirements. Sustainability aims at environment-friendly progress and development. World Health Organization defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.  Processed food is any food that has been changed in its form and nature by using certain processing techniques such as freezing, canning and dehydrating. The focus of this research is “ultra-processed foods”. Ultra-processed foods are the final food product that is processed by using chemicals and unnatural preservatives.  As defined by the United Nations, youth refers to the young people who fall in the age group of 15-24 years.

The problem: ultra-processed foods and its impact on human and environmental wellbeing. The food processing industry is largely driven by profit-making objectives owing to the intense competition in the market. The manufacturers of food processing have to ensure that they don’t lose out their customers to their competitors. To maintain their consumer base the manufacturers work to make their processed food desirable and attractive. In the process, they resort to the usage of such products that are unnatural and unhealthy for both the human body as well as the environment. Some of the examples of such ingredients include chemicals used for preserving, colouring, and adding texture and flavour to the natural food, refined carbohydrates, sweeteners, and processed vegetable oils.

Due to the use of above-mentioned ingredients, the consumption of ultra-processed foods becomes harmful to the human body. It has been found out through research that their consumption does not add any nutritional value to the human body. Moreover, it becomes very difficult for the human body to digest ultra-processed foods. Some people become addicted to such food and it has been studied that some food products are more addictive than drugs. Apart from this, the intake of the ultra-processed foods increases the instances of several diseases such as heart ailments, diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity.

Processed food also impacts the natural environment. The waste generated after the processing of the food and the handling of the waste affects the air, water and soil. The process of handling and packaging of the product results in the release of harmful chemicals and toxins in the environment. This not only affects the natural environment but also human health. 

The solution to this problem is to create awareness about the harmful effects of ultra-processed foods and to promote sustainable alternatives to it. The youth can play a very important role in spreading awareness about the ill-effects as well as the alternatives to the ultra-processed foods. The sample of our study is the young consumers of ultra-processed foods of the University of Delhi. This is because the youth is the largest consumer of the ultra-processed foods and they can work towards promoting more sustainable and healthy food choices and habits amongst people. The research questions are: 1) What are the different kinds of ultra-processed foods that are consumed by people? 2) How does the food processing industry work? 3) How can the youth be made aware about the ill-effects of ultra-processed foods? 4) What are the sustainable alternatives to ultra-processed foods? 5) What role youth can play in promoting sustainable alternatives? The hypothesis are: 1) Ultra-processed foods affect the environment and human well-being negatively. 2) The youth can play a positive role in promoting alternatives to ultra-processed foods.

The research methodology, is the theoretical and empirical analysis of the study. The nudge theory would be applied to understand how alternatives can be promoted by the youth. Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein introduced the concept of nudging and defined a nudge as “any aspect of the choice, architecture that predictably alters people’s behaviour without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives.” It doesn’t mean restricting the options available to the people but it means regulating their behaviour. The questionnaires and surveys to assess the consuming habits of the people and the use of pictorial and graphical representation of the data collected through the surveys and questionnaires are used. Despite the study focuses on the role of the youth, the surveys were conducted with youth as well as adults to make the study more inclusive and comprehensive.